Of Movies and Men
by panera
Summary: Cause Gibbs has his boat, and Abby has her music, and McGee has his computer games, and Ducky has his mother, and I just didn't know what else you had besides your silly movies


**A/N: **I wrote this as Tony/Kate friendship, but it can be Tate, if you want. This is only my second fic. Hope you like it.

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Kate wondered briefly why she was doing this, if she _should_ be doing this. It was late, after all. He could be sleeping. Even if he wasn't sleeping, he could be busy. He could have company over. Maybe she should have called first? But, again, what if he was sleeping? Then she would have woken him up. She had seen people wake Tony up after too much work and too little sleep; it wasn't pretty. The only two people she knew of that could wake him up and not get socked for it were Abby and Gibbs. She was no Abby, and she definitely was _not_ Gibbs. But before she could talk herself out it, she shook her head and mentally Gibbs slapped herself, then deftly knocked on Tony's apartment door. 

After a few moments of silent doubt on her part, the door opened to reveal a surprised looking DiNozzo, clad in a jeans and an Ohio State University t-shirt, wiping his hands on a dish towel.

When the initial shock of seeing someone in front of his door he never expected to see in front of his door cleared, he opened his mouth to speak. "Kate? What are you doing here? Who died?"

"No one died, Tony," she said with a laugh. "I just came to, you know, see how you were doing. I guess."

At Tony's quizzical look, she began to panic, fearing she'd done something way out of line, and the words just started to tumble out of her mouth and onto the floor. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't of come. It's just, I was worried, and I didn't know what else to do, you know? 'Cause Gibbs has his boat, and Abby has her music, and McGee has his computer games, and Ducky has his mother, and I just didn't know what else you had besides your silly movies. I just- I got worried cause I know how tough this case was. But I'm sorry, I shouldn't have because I have no right to barge in on your personal life and it's late and you could've had company over, and -"

"Kate!"

Kate looked up to see Tony standing there, towel clutched in hand, with a big grin on his face and amusement in his eyes.

"Yeah?" She asked tentatively.

"It's fine, really. I'm fine." He couldn't stop smiling. "I'm just- surprised, I guess. I didn't think you, uh, cared that much. But I appreciate it. That means a lot to me, that you'd come all the way out here for that," he said seriously.

"Oh. Okay. Well, good. That's good," she said, unsure of what to do next. She came, she conquered, but she never paid much attention in history class and didn't know what came after the conquering part.

Noticing her discomfort, Tony spoke up. "Why don't you come in for a bit? I was just finishing up some chores and was gonna watch a movie. You could join me, if you'd like?"

She considered the offer for a second. "Sure. I'd like that," she smiled. Tony opened the door a little more, then sidestepped to allow her room to pass. She tried to discreetly make it a point to not touch him as she entered, but Tony, being an experience investigator, noticed it and interpreted its meaning. She was here, as a friend, to check up on a friend. And he was okay with that. That flirting thing they did, it was just a game. He'd come at her, she'd come back equally, if not twice, as hard as him. Even if there was_ some_ meaning behind it all, they daren't defy Gibbs' rule.

"Just as long as it's not James Bond. After all your talking about it, I've practically got the whole script memorized."

While Tony closed and locked the door, she took a moment to examine her surroundings. It definitely wasn't what she was expecting. She thought there would be dirty clothes in every corner, dishes and glasses on top numerous surfaces, and dust coated furniture. She then remembered Tony mentioning a maid in passing one day. She assumed the maid not only cleaned the place, but had helped decorate and furnish it, too, because the dark mahogany furniture and the valley landscape paintings were just gorgeous.

"Tony, your place is-"

"Clean? I know, huh. Not what you expected. Rosalyn comes by once a week and tidies the place up," he explained as he walked into the kitchen, Kate trailing behind. "I wouldn't have bothered with a maid service, but with the hours Gibbs makes us keep, I just can't do everything on my own. But Rosa's such a sport, I love her. So I try to do what I can to make it easy on her. She knows, and she appreciates it, so she sometimes brings me these homemade, to-die-for Spanish cookies. Maybe I'll bring a few by the office next time," he said, looking back up at Kate as he dipped his hands in the now less than tepid water.

Busted. Not like she was going to admit it, though. "Actually, I was, uh, going to say amazing. The roll-top desk, and that chest are beautiful. The paintings are gorgeous, too."

Tony just smiled at her. He knew she could be telling the truth, but that she was honestly surprised at how clean and tidy the place was.

"I found the paintings in some old antique store a few years back. Most of the furniture, my grandmother gave me. Sent it over from Belgium, or some other European country. My grandfather made the desk. One of the few things I've got that shows any relation to the DiNozzo family, besides the name of course. Have a seat," he said, tactfully changing the subject. "Make yourself comfortable. Just two more dishes and I'm done." To prove it, he held up a dirty dish, then dropped it into the sink and began scrubbing.

Kate nodded, then worked her way around the counter to sit in one of the two wooden stools. She let out a breathe she hadn't realized she'd been holding. She was both relieved that Tony let her slide with that one, and surprised that he shared that little tidbit of family information. She knew how rare that was, and normally she would have pushed for more, but as a profiler, she knew the tone and signs Tony gave were his way of saying 'topic closed.' She was also surprised that Tony was doing dishes. When he said that he tried to do things to make it easier for Rosalyn, she assumed that meant cramming all the dishes into the dishwasher and then, maybe, putting them away. But, nope, not the case. Tony, the man sized frat boy, was hand washing the dishes. And not hastily, she noticed, but methodically, gently.

"Care for a glass of wine?"

She was too caught up in her thinking and hadn't realized he had finished. "Please," she smiled.

Tony opened a cabinet and took out two beautifully carved wine glasses, then proceeded to fill them up with a delicious looking red wine.

He handed her a glass, smiled, then took up the other for himself, leaving the bottle on the counter. After she took a sip, she would have asked what it was, but she probably wouldn't know it anyways, so she just said, "This is great."

"Sure is. C'mon, it's movie time," Tony said, waggling his eyebrows.

They walked into the living room, which was complete with a worn, but clean looking black leather couch, a coffee table, the biggest plasma screen t.v. Kate had ever seen, and an even bigger collection of DVD's.

"Have a seat," Tony pointed at the couch as he walked over to the shelves to search for something to watch.

Kate set her glass on the coffee table, then made herself comfortable, which she found very easy to do. She felt like she could just lay out on the couch and sleep forever, it was so comfortable. Not to mention the wine had helped loosen her up.

"What'll it be? Action, romance, comedy?" Tony asked as he slid his fingers over the binds of the numerous DVD's. "What about a classic?" he suggested.

Tony obviously to watch a classic, so Kate would agree. But, next time, she was picking. "That's fine." She then watched as Tony moved over to the left a little and began scanning the numerous videos in the section til he found what he was looking for.

With an 'ah-ha' he pulled one out and turned towards Kate. "How about _Bringing Up Baby_? 1938. Directed by Howard Hawks. Starring Cary Grant, Katharine Hepburn, and one adorable leopard?"

She vaguely remembered sitting down one night with her dad and watching it together. She was young at the time, so she didn't get much of it, but every time her dad would laugh, she would laugh with him. Maybe this time she would pay more attention.

"That sounds great." She watched as he took the disc out of its case and popped it into the player, all while holding his glass of wine. Not a drop was spilt. He had obviously done this enough to get it down to a fine art.

Once all was set, he set down his glass, turned up the volume, and joined her on the couch. They weren't touching, but she could feel the heat radiating from his body.

After he got settled, he looked at her sharply. "Sorry, I forgot to ask. You didn't want popcorn, did you?"

She laughed. "No, DiNozzo. The wine and the company are enough for me."

He smiled and turned his head back to focus on the screen. She shook her head at him, then did the same.

Tomorrow, they probably wouldn't speak of tonight's events. They would just look at each other, smile, and then get to work. Kate knew Tony wasn't okay earlier. Their latest case was really tough, and it had hit real close to home for him. But after tonight and the dishwashing and the wine and the company and the movie, she hoped he would be better. And if all that wasn't enough, she would make sure tomorrow's smile was big and bright, just for him, because she cared and because a good man like Tony deserved it.

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_Reviews would be appreciated!_


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